Preserving Caulerpa sp. for feeding your Fish?
The best thing to do is setup a refugium in your sump, or purchase an after market refugium. These devices will allow your Caulerpa to flourish without predation. A refugium also contributes to preventing unwanted algae growth and maintaining water quality. However, these devices can be an expensive way of storing food for your fish when that is the primary purpose.
As a super cheap alternative, you can build an "AquaHut Preserve" for your Caulerpa. This DIY device competes with the idea of an in-take refugium, which can be purchased for $30.00. The total cost of the AquaHut Preserve is around $5.00. The time involved is about 30 minutes. You will need the following:
· Power drill with 3/8" drill bit
· Appropriate size fish collection container (This is the plastic rectangular cup that the LFS will hang on the tank while scooping up fish)
Directions:
Drill 12 to 20 3/8" holes randomly in the bottom and sides of the container. It is important to drill holes on the backside of the container even if you decide to mount the AquaHut Preserve in the Hang on Tank (HOT) manner, discussed later. This will allow the Caulerpa more places to hide from fish, as it coils between the glass and the container. Once the AquaHut Preserve is built, you can locate it in one of two places:
1. HOT Location: Simply hang the container on the tank so that the Caulerpa is in the water. The Caulerpa will be exposed to circulating water and light.
2. Submerged Location: Place the Caulerpa inside the container, submerge it in the water, and then flip the container upside down and burry the device in the sand bed. Be certain to secure the container by wedging it tightly in place or placing a rock on the HOT plastic lip to ensure proper anchoring.
Benefits:
In both of these mounting locations, the Caulerpa will be permitted to grow in the confines of the container. As the Caulerpa searches for more room to grow, it will begin to grow through the holes of the container and be exposed to the fish. The fish will not only eat this, but they will pull on the Caulerpa exposing more of it, thus serving as a great trimming tool, which theoretically could be a maintenance free system, but not likely. As the crop gets dense inside the container you may simply reach into it and pull out a portion of Caulerpa to feed your fish.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Each Mounting Location:
HOT Location: This method allows the best control and access to the Caulerpa. The disadvantage is another HOT device to clutter the appearance of the tank.
Submerged Location: The advantage of this method is allowing the user to hide the AquaHut Preserve somewhere in the tank behind the aquascaping. This works especially well in 125gal or larger tanks. The disadvantage with this approach is that burrowing animals can dig up the container allowing it to float around. Therefore, Caulerpa will come out and get eaten. The other disadvantage is access to the Caulerpa. It becomes much more troublesome to remove Caulerpa to feed your fish.
The best thing to do is setup a refugium in your sump, or purchase an after market refugium. These devices will allow your Caulerpa to flourish without predation. A refugium also contributes to preventing unwanted algae growth and maintaining water quality. However, these devices can be an expensive way of storing food for your fish when that is the primary purpose.
As a super cheap alternative, you can build an "AquaHut Preserve" for your Caulerpa. This DIY device competes with the idea of an in-take refugium, which can be purchased for $30.00. The total cost of the AquaHut Preserve is around $5.00. The time involved is about 30 minutes. You will need the following:
· Power drill with 3/8" drill bit
· Appropriate size fish collection container (This is the plastic rectangular cup that the LFS will hang on the tank while scooping up fish)
Directions:
Drill 12 to 20 3/8" holes randomly in the bottom and sides of the container. It is important to drill holes on the backside of the container even if you decide to mount the AquaHut Preserve in the Hang on Tank (HOT) manner, discussed later. This will allow the Caulerpa more places to hide from fish, as it coils between the glass and the container. Once the AquaHut Preserve is built, you can locate it in one of two places:
1. HOT Location: Simply hang the container on the tank so that the Caulerpa is in the water. The Caulerpa will be exposed to circulating water and light.
2. Submerged Location: Place the Caulerpa inside the container, submerge it in the water, and then flip the container upside down and burry the device in the sand bed. Be certain to secure the container by wedging it tightly in place or placing a rock on the HOT plastic lip to ensure proper anchoring.
Benefits:
In both of these mounting locations, the Caulerpa will be permitted to grow in the confines of the container. As the Caulerpa searches for more room to grow, it will begin to grow through the holes of the container and be exposed to the fish. The fish will not only eat this, but they will pull on the Caulerpa exposing more of it, thus serving as a great trimming tool, which theoretically could be a maintenance free system, but not likely. As the crop gets dense inside the container you may simply reach into it and pull out a portion of Caulerpa to feed your fish.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Each Mounting Location:
HOT Location: This method allows the best control and access to the Caulerpa. The disadvantage is another HOT device to clutter the appearance of the tank.
Submerged Location: The advantage of this method is allowing the user to hide the AquaHut Preserve somewhere in the tank behind the aquascaping. This works especially well in 125gal or larger tanks. The disadvantage with this approach is that burrowing animals can dig up the container allowing it to float around. Therefore, Caulerpa will come out and get eaten. The other disadvantage is access to the Caulerpa. It becomes much more troublesome to remove Caulerpa to feed your fish.
